How to plan for an efficient driveline.

[drphibes]

I plan on putting a Shafiroff 598 BBC that will be pushing 875 at the crank in a '69 Camaro. I want to be able to put as much of that to the rear wheels as possible. I am doing my research on driveline components that will yield the most efficient driveline.

What suggestions do you have? Transmission? Driveshaft? Other Components etc. Thanks

Robert

[Steve Chryssos]

That's a lot of beans. Manual or Auto? What will you use for rear tires? Will you also run slicks in addition to street tires? What is target vehicle weight? What are your intended uses for the car? Assign percentages for the car's life at the track vs street? What are cam specs? Carb or EFI? What is the altitude where you live (very important on carbureted monster big blocks.)

This is a tough topic. Monster big blocks are in a class by themselves. They make crazy torque just off idle and then hold that number thru redline until they run out of air. This subject always generates a lot of differing opinions. But very few people have any actual experience with motors bigger than about 509-540. Even fewer have experience with big inch motors built for the street. During your research, be sure to weigh all thread responses against actual personal experience--not: "I saw a guy on some message board who made a pass in the 8's with a junkyard TH350 transmission that was accidentally filled with sand. It was a blown V6, not a 598, but his cousin's sister SWEARS it makes 900HP. Here's a link to the video of that one pass...."

My personal project experience includes the following:
Blown and NA carbed 632
NA carbed 638
NA EFI 705

Here we go.

[Bowtieracing]

This is intresting.. 8s with trans full of sand

Okay but seriously,is there really difference between 9" or 12bolt rears?

I have heard at 9" takes more power to run?

[tyoneal]

Be careful with a hot big inch big block.

As Steve said, They make Crazy Torque!

Heed his words, you might be getting into Too Much of a Good Thing. No Kidding!

Save your money (And your life) and start with something a bit more reserved. (454 HO or something like that) Learn to drive it, enjoy it, then sell it and buy the Engine you mentioned. If you still want it.

I had a BBC that made 650 hp. I thought biggest is best. It wasn't worth a crap on the street, because unless you did nothing more than concentrate on what you were doing, it was way too easy for things to get way out of control. Forget altogether Driving in the rain.

Maybe Shafiroff could build you something about half that power to start with, then upgrade it as you get comfortable with it.

Good Luck!

Ty

[Silver69Camaro]

Originally Posted by tyoneal

I had a BBC that made 650 hp. I thought biggest is best. It wasn't worth a crap on the street, because unless you did nothing more than concentrate on what you were doing, it was way too easy for things to get way out of control. Forget altogether Driving in the rain.

You know, that's a good point. My last motor was a 412" small block with all the goodies..ran mid 11's with a crappy 60-ft (high 1.8's). Now I have a bone-stock LS1 motor...and I like the drivability much better. The 412" motor was fun in some ways, but it was WAY to easy to lose control of the car. Now, I can put my foot in it pretty hard, still go fast, and maintain some control. Less tire smoke, more foward motion.

I'll admit it's not as fun for car shows when people ask "What'll do in the 1/4?", but who cares...it's all about driving the thing.

[QSPres]

If you're not going to put sticky tires on it, a 8.5" 10 bolt, TH350 and steel driveshaft will be fine... Spend all the money on the rebuilds though, you'll need it.

If you're going to drag it, I'd probably only change the trans to a TH400.

[chicane]

Originally Posted by Bowtieracing

Okay but seriously, is there really difference between 9" or 12bolt rears??

At that power level... you better believe there is.